ALTERNATIVE ENERGY FORUM - etc.

Yes we can have them (mostly) - I think RMS had/has one he tried burning old engine oil on??? We need to conform to a bucket load of regulations (building regs) and the flue has to be signed off by a ‘certified person’ for your home and contents insurance to be valid. It can be an expensive process particularly if you don’t do DIY. Personally I’ve found it well worth the hassle.

However, there are some areas of the UK (England) which are ‘smoke free’ (mainly London and other big cities) where using a woodburner would leave you with a hefty fine. https://www.gov.uk/smoke-control-area-rules

As you probably remember I have a wood burning stove. Anyway, some time ago I considered modifying the flue with a little turbine to take advantage of the hot gasses rising. I decided not to bother as it was a lot of work for little or no gain. Plus my home insurance would be invalid if it started dripping tar and caught fire!
I imagine, if lots of households returned to wood burners for heating, many thousands of flue/chimney turbines could collectively make a noticeable contribution to the grid. I’m not sure the energy companies would consider lowering the price of energy or even offer a “feed in” discount.

Sadly the missus no. She didn’t even think about it😂

The Sisyphus generator.